Shattered Dreams: Broken C64 Games

by Alec Foster ·
Published November 19, 2018
· Updated November 19, 2018

For most of us who grew up in the 80’s and 90’s, the world of video and computer games was a vibrant and exciting place, full of revolutionary game experiences that made childhood seem so exciting.

However, in a world where the industry was still taking baby steps and quality assurance could be a hit-and-miss affair, it wasn’t uncommon for bugs and glitches to make into the final release of a game, often to the chagrin of the players who would eventually discover them.

What would often make matters worse is that many of these games were amazing difficult to begin, and it became an especially bitter pill to swallow when player’s discovered that their Herculean efforts and gaming prowess were to be rewarded with little more than digital trout-slap to the face.

I’ve fallen victim to far too many of these, and I thought it might be interesting to look at some C64 games which, for one reason or another, simply cannot be beaten:

RoboCop: Ocean Software (1989)

Ocean’s movie tie-in featuring the amnesiac cyborg of justice was one of the mostly hotly anticipated releases of the year, and rightly so; with an IP almost tailor-made for games, plus some awesome music from Jonathan Dunn, this side-scrolling shooter really should have been gaming gold.

Sadly, officer Murphy’s endeavours to dispense justice come to a grinding halt in level 5 (the drug factory), where an overly-aggressive time limit makes it impossible to complete by normal means.

The eventual discovery of a bug that lets RoboCop walk through walls did little to help matters, thanks to the fact that the subsequent level was completely broken, filling the screen with corrupt graphics and visual garbage, making it impossible to complete.

However, thanks to the endeavours of ElfKaa, a 100% working version of the game was released in 2012; not only does this version fix the timer issue, it also resolves the graphics corruption in the OCP offices, allowing players to finally complete the game.

Time is not on your side in RoboCop’s drug lab

Chiller: Mastertronic (1985)

An early entry from the Richard and David Darling of Codemasters fame, this spooky collect ’em up didn’t get off to the best of starts, thanks to an in-game tune sounding all too familiar to Michael Jackson’s Thriller for the legal team’s liking.

While a updated release might have quelled the impending wrath of the legal heavies, it didn’t do anything to fix the placement of one of the crosses you need to collect in order to progress.

This discovery was made all the more infuriating when you consider just how insanely difficult the game is to begin with, and I suspect that many a joystick was hurled in frustration by angry players who discovered this oversight.

Fortunately, a fixed version of the game was released back in 2000, shifting the position of the offending crucifix to a location that could finally be reached.

Chiller’s game-breaking bug leaves you feeling cross

Frightmare: Cascade Games (1988)

Another spooky, horror-themed game to make the list, this unnerving flick-screen platform game featured some surprisingly atmospheric sound effects for the time.

Trapped within the confines of a horrifying nightmare, players must explore a labyrinth of interconnected screens, shooting monsters and using items in a bid to escape the eternity of this terror-filled slumber. Players must visit each and every location in an effort to advance the dream timer, a measurement of how close you are to awaking from the nightmare.

Unfortunately, the fact that the C64 version lacks enough rooms to advance the dream timer to the required wake-up time must have slipped past quality assurance, condemning players to wander the hellish maze of rooms for all eternity.

Frightmare – another unbeatable game

Rastan: Imagine (1987)

John Meegan’s efforts in bringing Taito’s broadsword-wielding beefcake to the C64 were, by and large, a decent effort.

Boasting some great music from Martin Galway, the conversion included most of the levels and features from the arcade version, and the gameplay wasn’t too bad either.

Sadly, any attempts to beat the game came to an abrupt halt in the fourth level, thanks to fatal bug that prevented players from using a rope to swing across a pool of water.

Despite all attempts to ford the river, the length and positioning of offending rope meant that Rastan’s muscular buttocks would always collide with the water’s surface, resulting in instant death and a premature end to the high-fantasy adventure.

Rastan’s QA was more than a little ropey

Savage: Probe Software (1988)

While the plot involving a muscular hero battling against the odds to save his betrothed from the confines of a castle dungeon was hardly original, the mix of gameplay styles, high quality visuals and outstanding music from Maniacs of Noise seemed certain to propel Probe’s action game to greatness.

Unfortunately, the end result proved to be an overly-difficult experience with a punishing multi-load that sapped much of the fun from this arcade-themed title.

The fact that an oversight by the programmers meant that, despite collecting all four pieces of treasure in the final stage, the game fails to recognise your efforts, stating you haven’t collected sufficient booty to bribe the jail keeper.

With no (legitimate) way to complete the game, not only was this bug the final nail in the coffin of a fairly underwhelming game, it would condemn poor old Savage to a life of enforced bachelorhood – at least the music was good!

Savage – yet another disappointment

Predator: Activision (1988)

The classic sci-fi movie starring Arnold Schwarzenegger is undoubtedly one of the best action movies of the ’80s, so it comes as no surprise that a number of games based on the license would emerge soon after the cinematic release.

This game is somewhat unusual, thanks to the existence of two separate versions, each featuring the same core mechanics, although there more than a few differences to set them apart.

Sometimes referred to as “fast” and “slow” versions, the “slow” version (demonstrated on my YouTube channel) features gameplay that runs at an achingly slow pace, with characters moving around as if wading waist-deep in molasses. It features an inventory system and power-ups not present seen in the “fast” version, as well as an alternate opening sequence.

By comparison, the “fast” version runs at a much speedier pace and offers a more dynamic experience, which is a shame when you discover it cannot be beaten.

Make it all the way to final stage, and you’ll discover that the log trap needed to kill the plasma-casting alien hunter doesn’t work (it isn’t even there!), and going toe-to-toe with the Predator will simply get you killed.

For all the faults with it’s turgid gameplay, the “slow” version can at least be beaten. The log trap features a rope and pulley, which allows Dutch to raise the log into the air, ready to bring it crashing down on the Predator’s head; succeed, and you’ll make it out of the jungle Hell alive.

As to why two version of the game exist remains a mystery, so I’d be very interested if anyone can shed some light on the game’s development history!

7 Responses

One of the things I like about games nowadays is checkpoints. Without them I’d get nowhere, like happened with Rastan and Savage which I bought with my hard earned pocket money. I certainly never got far enough into either game to discover the game breaking bugs.

You’re right – many of these older titles were so hard that the player wouldn’t have made it far enough to even know it was broken. Thanks to emulators with save states and other tools, it’s much easier to discover some of these problems.